The Trusted Adviser
This title is being borrowed from the real estate industry, but it works in the BHPH industry as well. This is a total customer focused approach to selling that will revolutionize the way you do business and more importantly will help you build a strong customer base which will keep them coming back time after time for the services that you offer in your dealership.
We have touched on a few of these concepts before, but here are the reasons that you should become the trusted adviser when it comes to the sales of vehicles in your area:
Raise Your Value
Every business likes to think that they offer value to their customers, and maybe they do, but the reality is that few businesses go the extra mile to provide real value and unexpected benefits from doing business with them. And with economic conditions being what they are, there has to be a financial limit to which one can go. But this is not about spending more money on advertising or worthless trinkets with your company name stamped on them. You MUST offer real value in the following ways.
Be the Expert
You are in the car business and as such, you should be the expert on cars and trucks, what is good to purchase, and what is not. That is the baseline that you need to begin with, but you also need to go further. Knowing the cars and trucks you are selling means that you talk openly and honestly about them to potential customers while gently steering them to making wise purchases.
If you see a customer looking at a vehicle that is not a good fit, speak up. Offer a better suggestion. Do not underestimate the input that you can have in this area. To be passive is to allow sales that might not be in the best interest of a customer. That makes you look like you are in business for just one reason only: money. Maybe other dealers are, but that should not be the case with you if you are going to be considered an expert. You might not be in agreement with everyone, but at least you will be respected.
This also encompasses going the extra mile in both obtaining customers and following up after a sale. Do not wait for problems to surface or issues to arise. Look for ways to help you customers handle items like vehicle repairs. Develop a good solid relationship with auto repair companies and offer to send customers to them in exchange for sales leads from them.
Deliver Real Value
When a customer successfully starts their vehicle, it is a direct reflection on your ability to obtain and sell vehicles that are worthy of a place in their garage. Think about it this way: if you sell vehicles that you know have been wrecked and put back together for quick sale, the customer will eventually learn about this and then when they do have problems they will blame you. Do you think you will ever see them again or get another sale from them? Real value begins by offering solid vehicles that customers will be proud to own and drive. If you cannot purchase a vehicle for resale that you would not buy for yourself to drive, then it has no place on your lot.
Never let a sale close and the customer to drive away without some sort of program in place to help make sure that they stay happy as a customer. Here are some ideas for you to consider: send them a car wash coupon every few months. Work out a discount on oil changes at a local quick lube business and then send out a mailer to your customers with a coupon to take advantage of the special price. You will be surprised at the responses and then you might even get callers who find out about it from family and friends wanting to know if you have any extra coupons. What a great way to bring in some potential customers!
Use Technology
Use email distribution lists and targeted advertising to keep your name in front of your customers. This way when they are ready to consider another vehicle purchase, they will think of you first. Using technology in this way is very inexpensive, but can pay big dividends. The same is true for social networking efforts: facebook and the like will help in this way, too.
Finally, set yourself apart from you competition by pursuing excellence in everything you do. Dress like it, act like it and do the things above, and you will begin to reap the benefits of building a strong business and customer base that will be there even in uncertain economic times.
Don’t forget to protect your business from the occasional bad customers. Installing a Smart Tracker from Rocky Mountain Tracking into each vehicle that you sell is the best way to go about this. You only have to initiate tracking charges should your client stop making payments and begin to elude your efforts to contact them.
James Neely is a freelance writer who writes about GPS Tracking devices for Rocky Mountain Tracking.
We have touched on a few of these concepts before, but here are the reasons that you should become the trusted adviser when it comes to the sales of vehicles in your area:
Raise Your Value
Every business likes to think that they offer value to their customers, and maybe they do, but the reality is that few businesses go the extra mile to provide real value and unexpected benefits from doing business with them. And with economic conditions being what they are, there has to be a financial limit to which one can go. But this is not about spending more money on advertising or worthless trinkets with your company name stamped on them. You MUST offer real value in the following ways.
Be the Expert
You are in the car business and as such, you should be the expert on cars and trucks, what is good to purchase, and what is not. That is the baseline that you need to begin with, but you also need to go further. Knowing the cars and trucks you are selling means that you talk openly and honestly about them to potential customers while gently steering them to making wise purchases.
If you see a customer looking at a vehicle that is not a good fit, speak up. Offer a better suggestion. Do not underestimate the input that you can have in this area. To be passive is to allow sales that might not be in the best interest of a customer. That makes you look like you are in business for just one reason only: money. Maybe other dealers are, but that should not be the case with you if you are going to be considered an expert. You might not be in agreement with everyone, but at least you will be respected.
Be Proactive
This also encompasses going the extra mile in both obtaining customers and following up after a sale. Do not wait for problems to surface or issues to arise. Look for ways to help you customers handle items like vehicle repairs. Develop a good solid relationship with auto repair companies and offer to send customers to them in exchange for sales leads from them.
Deliver Real Value
When a customer successfully starts their vehicle, it is a direct reflection on your ability to obtain and sell vehicles that are worthy of a place in their garage. Think about it this way: if you sell vehicles that you know have been wrecked and put back together for quick sale, the customer will eventually learn about this and then when they do have problems they will blame you. Do you think you will ever see them again or get another sale from them? Real value begins by offering solid vehicles that customers will be proud to own and drive. If you cannot purchase a vehicle for resale that you would not buy for yourself to drive, then it has no place on your lot.
Follow Up
Never let a sale close and the customer to drive away without some sort of program in place to help make sure that they stay happy as a customer. Here are some ideas for you to consider: send them a car wash coupon every few months. Work out a discount on oil changes at a local quick lube business and then send out a mailer to your customers with a coupon to take advantage of the special price. You will be surprised at the responses and then you might even get callers who find out about it from family and friends wanting to know if you have any extra coupons. What a great way to bring in some potential customers!
Use Technology
Use email distribution lists and targeted advertising to keep your name in front of your customers. This way when they are ready to consider another vehicle purchase, they will think of you first. Using technology in this way is very inexpensive, but can pay big dividends. The same is true for social networking efforts: facebook and the like will help in this way, too.
Finally, set yourself apart from you competition by pursuing excellence in everything you do. Dress like it, act like it and do the things above, and you will begin to reap the benefits of building a strong business and customer base that will be there even in uncertain economic times.
Don’t forget to protect your business from the occasional bad customers. Installing a Smart Tracker from Rocky Mountain Tracking into each vehicle that you sell is the best way to go about this. You only have to initiate tracking charges should your client stop making payments and begin to elude your efforts to contact them.
James Neely is a freelance writer who writes about GPS Tracking devices for Rocky Mountain Tracking.
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© 2010 Created by Greg Goebel.
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